Yes! This is the time of the year where
you finally get to take a break from your 9 to 5 job. Time for a short getaway!
No matter you are heading to the hot and sunny beach in Port Dickson, up to cool and breezy Genting
Highlands or even to
a busy city in Japan, besides stuffing all basic
necessities into your suitcase and your favourite Iphone 6s to capture those
beautiful memories, another must need item is your travel medication kit.
You have the sunset right in front of your eyes, you have the
breeze blowing right through your hair like a supermodel. But opps, you are
sneezing away non-stop. Can’t let some minor runny nose ruin a beautiful day
like this isn’t it. This is where your travel medication kit will come in
handy.
Now, the most important question pops up. What should my travel medication kit consist?
A good travel health kit
should contain enough supplies to prevent illness, handle minor injuries and
illnesses, and manage pre-existing medical conditions longer than the duration
of your trip. Below are some of the examples of the medicines for you to bring
along:
Food poisoning
Travellers' diarrhea is
the most common illness affecting travellers. It is usually caused by
consumption of contaminated food or water. Although diarrhea is rarely serious
or life-threatening in healthy adults, but it can certainly make your trip
unpleasant. As diarrhea often
leads to dehydration, it is very important to consume sufficient liquid. The oral rehydration salt is recommended for
water and electrolyte depletion. 1 sachet is to be
taken after every loose motion.
Some
anti-diarrheal medications such as loperamide can be
bought over-the-counter to treat the symptoms of diarrhea. These drugs decrease
the frequency and urgency of using the bathroom, and they may make it easier
for a person with diarrhea to ride on a bus or airplane.
Dose: Initial
dose for an adult is 2 capsule and for a child (6-17years) is 1 capsule.This is
followed by 1 capsule after each subsequent loose stool. The maximum number of
capsule per day for adult is 8.
Loparamide capsule |
Activated charcoal is used to treat poisonings. It helps in diarrhea as it
is good at trapping chemicals and preventing their absorption.
Dose:
Adults:
2-4 tablets are required 3-4 times a day.
Children: The dose for children is half the dose of an adult.
*** You
can either dissolve the tablets in a cup of water by stirring before swallowing
or take it whole with plenty liquid(around 2 glasses of water). Take at least 2 hours before or 2 hours
after other medications. Activated charcoal is contraindicated in diarrhea accompanied by fever.
Activated charcoal |
Motion sickness
Motion
sickness happens when the motion you see is different from the motion sensed by
your inner ear. For travellers who often experience motion
sickness, don’t let it ruin your whole journey. Pop in an anti-motion sickness medication such as Veloxin ( Meclozine HCI 25mg and pyridoxine HCI 50mg)
Adult:
Veloxin 1-2 tablets daily 1 hour before travelling. Dose may be repeated every
24 hours if necessary.
Children: Novomin syrup for children 7-12 years (10-15ml), children
2-6 years (2.5-5ml) Repeat 8 hourly if necessary. Take the first dose half and
hour before the journey.
Veloxin |
Novomin tablets and syrup |
Other steps in preventing motion sickness include sitting in the front passenger seat or drive during the road trip or getting a central cabin on a cruise ride. Meanwhile, sucking on a ginger candy, or other flavored lozenges may help as well.
Cold and Flu
What’s
worse than sneezing and wheezing throughout your holiday? Common flu symptoms
such as runny nose or blocked nose, fever, headache and sore throat will
usually come together like a 5-in-1 premix coffee.
Antihistamines such as loratidine (does not cause
drowsiness) and chlorpheniramine (will
cause drowsiness) will relieve runny nose while nasal
decongestant such as pseudoephedrine can be
used to relieve nose block.
Clarinase for runny and blocked nose
There are certain
medications such as Clarinase
that have both the combination (loratadine + pseudoephedrine) for people
suffering from runny nose and blocked nose. Nevertheless, not everyone can take
oral nasal decongestant as it might unknowingly increase the heart rate,
leading to irregular heart beat. Besides that, it may lead to temporary
increment in blood glucose level among diabetics. Further elaborations on ‘cold
and flu’ medications can be viewed in our Keep those sneezing and wheezing away!!! article.
|
For fever in adults, 2
tablets of 500mg paracetamol will do the trick. The maximum dose per day
for adult is 8 tablets. Other options such as ibuprofen will work as well but it should not be taken
if you ever suffered from a stomach ulcer or if you are allergic to aspirin,
ibuprofen or any other NSAIDS. People taking other medications, asthma
sufferers and pregnant women should only take it after consulting their
doctors.
Sore throat can be a
nuisance especially when it becomes so painful it is hard to even swallow your
saliva. In this case,
Strepsils or Difflam can
help in soothing your throat.
Difflam and Strepsils lozenges for sore throat |
Constipation
Travelers can experience constipation due
to lack of fruits and vegetables in their diet. Usually, drinking plenty of
liquid and taking fruits and vegetable will be able to prevent this. The Fybogel Hi-Fibre Orange
drink can be another option as it is an easy and convenient way
to increase fibre in your diet by helping your digestive system work more
efficiently and gently relieving constipation the natural way. However, always
remember that 8 cups of water a day is a necessity.
Fybogel Hi-Fibre Orange drink for constipation |
Gastric/heartburn/ indigestion
Time really flies when you
are having fun during your vacation. You will often find yourself forgetting
your meals or probably regret having too much of those spicy chili crab. In
this case, Zellox-II or Gaviscon may come in handy
for symptomatic relief of gastric, heartburn or indigestion.
Zellox-II and Gaviscon |
Skin Care
As you are planning a trip to a developing country,
especially those places by the countryside and taking a walk in the rice
plantations, the last thing that you would want for is a cut or continuous
itchiness on your skin. Apart from the exotic wildlife and impressive
landmarks, it is important that travelers are equipped with some basic
over-the-counter (OTC) creams or ointments as a preventive measure when
travelling to the countryside or somewhere near to mother nature.
So, what kind of
creams or ointment to we need to have in hand?
Just a small tube of anti-itch (Hydrocortisone 1% Cream/
Ointment) or antifungal (Miconazole 2% Topical Cream, Terbinafine 1% Cream)
should do. If you have enough space in your luggage, you can also opt for an
antibacterial (Bactitracin/ Double Antibiotic Ointment) if you’re expecting
cuts or falls during your trip. Put the creams or ointments into small,
zippered, clear plastic bags for easy identification and packing.
These over-the-counter (OTC) medications do not require you
to have a doctor’s prescription to purchase them, you can pack them in your
checked luggage. However, you can keep some aside in your carry-ons or pockets
should your luggage go astray.
You day of summer fun
is ruined by sunburn and intense skin peeling. What should you do to protect
your skin from them?
As you might already know that the best way to keep your skin
healthy and youthful is to stay out of the sun during its peak hours and use sunscreen and
protective clothing when exposing to the sun. Here are some facts that might
not know how powerful the sun’s rays are:
★ The traditional Spanish Beach
umbrellas found at beaches do not provide sufficient sun protection. Studies
conducted had shown that ⅓ of UV rays are able to reach the skin. 5% of UV rays
are still able to pass the umbrella and onto the skin.
★ UV radiation is the strongest between
11am and 4pm especially during summer months.
★ Sunburn can develop in just 15
minutes and you may not realize it until the symptoms appear 3 - 5 hours after
sun exposure.
★ Reflection from the sand and water
increases the amount of sun rays exposed to you. (P.S. Note that you are at a
higher chance of getting sunburn when vacationing in snowy destinations, and it
is because the sun ray reflecting off the snow increases too.)
★ Travellers travelling to destinations
nearer to the equator (E.g. Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil. Republic of Congo,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Indonesia, Malaysia,
Singapore, Phuket, Bali, Philippines) are at an increased risk of getting
sunburn.
Dear readers, while the memory of your sunburn is still
painfully fresh, it’s time to refresh yourself with the following steps on how
to protect yourself from the sun rays.
1. Apply sunscreen
with a sun protection factor (SPF) between 15 - 30 and apply it 30 minutes
before exposing to the sun. Don’t forget to protect your lips, ears, hands and
back of your neck.
2. If you’ve been under the sun or in
the water, re-apply waterproof sunscreen
every 2 hours.
3. Stay hydrated.
Remember to drink plenty of water (except caffeine-free and alcohol-free
beverages) to keep yourself hydrated.
4. However, if you have sunburn after
long hours under the sun, remember to keep in mind these steps to avoid further
damage to your skin.
a. Use compresses such as cold water to
cool down the pain and heat of the sunburn area. A cool shower or bath is also
recommended to minimize the damage to sunburned skin. Avoid using SOAP!!!
b. If you are having blisters, DO NOT burst or break them open. A padded bandage can also be used
to cover the blisters when you’ve got blisters on area which tend to get
irritated and frictioned by your clothes.
c. Aloe vera does a great job in
soothing your sunburned skin as well!
Furthermore, there are some examples of topical
over-the-counter products which are available in all pharmacies for skin
conditions (dry skin, fungal, mosquito bite, sunburn, itchy, rash, muscle
aches, etc.)
● Antiseptics
● Antifungal
● Anti-itch
● Hand sanitizer gel
● Calamine lotion
● Aloe vera gel
● Sunscreen / Lip balm (Banana boat,
Coppertone Sport-SPF 50, No Ad-SPF 45, Bull Frog Sport-SPF 40, Blue Lizard
Sensitive-SPF 30, Blistex Medicated Lip Balm SPF 15, Vaseline)
● Insect repellent (Controlled Release
DEET, Lemongrass, Minyak Kapak, Permethrin spray for clothes/gears)
● Analgesic cream
● Plasters/ Gauze pads/ Tape
Summary for your to-bring-list:
Antidiarrheal
medication
Carbon in
cases of food poisoning
Oral
rehydration salt
Antihistamine
for runny nose or allergies
Nasal
decongestant for blocked nose (alone or in combination with antihistamine)
Drops for sore
throat
Medicine for
pain or fever
Anti-motion
sickness medication
Mild laxative
for constipation
Medication for
gastric, heartburn or indigestion
Sunscreen and
lip balm
Lotions or
moisturisers for hydration
Creams and
ointments for cuts and skin infections
Note: The above medications suggested are just examples. It
is to be used as a guide for packing only. Dosage for children below 12 years
old may vary. Always consult your nearby pharmacist or doctor to identify which
medication suits best for your health condition. Any long term medication prescribed by the
doctor is required to be continue even though you are on your vacation.
Happy Holidays!!!
P/s: Stay tune for our Travel Health Kit Part II !!
Authors:
1.
Chang
Jen Nee
BPharm (Hons) (IMU)
2.
Grace
Ho Mee Yan
BPharm (Hons) (IMU)
Editors:
1)
Ong
Jijien
BPharm (Hons) (IMU)
2)
Tan
Sue Fern
BPharm (Hons) (IMU)
Nice great article thanks for sharing VCENFORCE 50 MG TABLETS
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